by Kelly Goode
A large brown rat clawed its way from beneath the material and scurried across the floor, narrowly escaping Gerrard’s enormous boots as he staggered around.
I fell to my knees, and the rat leapt onto my thigh then scampered up my back. Its tiny feet tickled. I should’ve been scared of the rodent, but knowing it was Mari, I wasn’t. She settled on my shoulder, and I felt her claws penetrate the cotton of my t-shirt as she tried to grip my skin.
‘Careful,’ I said, getting back to my feet, fully expecting the rest of the team to arrive to investigate.
‘They’re not coming,’ Harvey said, and Carter’s words came back to me. My heart sank as I realised whatever happened next in this room, we were on our own.
‘We need to do something,’ Harvey continued.
‘Like what?’
His black eyes seemed to glow inside his face as he contemplated my question.
‘I have skills,’ he finally said, inclining his head as he studied my face. ‘As I’m sure you do too.’
I huffed.
‘What can a rat, a demon, a succubus and a fire-witch do that won’t conclude with Gerrard’s death? I certainly don’t want that on my conscience.’
Harvey flashed me a satisfied smile.
‘So you’re a fire-witch, are you? I’m pissed that it’s taken almost a week for that to come out. Though, I should have guessed.’
‘I don’t think what powers I have is important.’
Gerrard’s arms were flailing all over the place, and he narrowly missed hitting Sasha as she dodged back and forth trying to get away from him.
‘Use your magic to distract Gerrard,’ Harvey instructed, the muscles in his arms flexing as he clenched his hands into fists.
‘What are you going to do?’
‘You’ll see.’
I pulled Mari off my shoulder, and she wriggled her small, hairy body in protest, trying to cling to my t-shirt with her claws.
‘I don’t want you getting squashed.’
The rat squeaked and tried to nibble my fingers.
‘Stay out of the way until we’ve got Gerrard under control,’ I told her firmly as I placed her on the floor. She twitched her nose and then scurried off into the shadows.
I closed my eyes, cursing Harvey for forcing me to use my abilities and Carter for not coming with reinforcements. I felt the heat begin to snake its way around my body as I prepared to use the full potential of the powers I’d vowed never to unleash again.
22
‘What are you waiting for, Red? A bloody fanfare? Do your thing.’
I opened my eyes and scowled at Harvey. I was reluctant to evoke the fire, and he wasn’t helping ease my anxiety in the slightest.
‘The last time I did this, I was trying to blow up a house and kill everyone inside it. Not exactly my finest moment.’
I chanted the words I knew would conjure a giant fireball and raised my palms out in front of me in anticipation. Heat radiated from my stomach and travelled through my veins, causing flames to dance across my skin.
It felt as if my blood was boiling, but rather than hurt, it was as comforting as being wrapped in a warm blanket.
I’d missed this sensation.
‘I’m impressed, Red,’ Harvey said. ‘Now show the crazy ogre-man your pretty fire trick while I get Sasha to safety.’
I nodded at Harvey who started to fade away until all that remained was a cloud of black smoke.
‘Freaky,’ I said, watching the smoke drift across the room towards Sasha, who was doing her best to dodge Gerrard’s fists.
I concentrated on my hands, and the globes of fire began growing in my palms.
‘Gerrard,’ I called, waving the fire above my head so the Irishman would notice. He jerked his head round, his glassy eyes focusing on the light but not me. He lurched forward, swinging his arm and I jumped out of the way.
Harvey emerged from within the smoke and lifted Sasha off her feet. They both disappeared into the black cloud then reappeared by the door.
Sasha grabbed the handle and pulled.
‘Damn door is locked,’ she said.
‘Put your palm on the panel to open it,’ I shouted.
I’d stopped paying attention to Gerrard, and he clipped me across the cheek with the back of his hand. My vision blurred, and I wobbled on my feet. He hadn’t put any real force behind the blow or else I’d have fallen to the floor, but it was enough for me to see stars.
I shook my head to clear the fog swirling inside my brain. Gerrard took another swipe at me, and I felt how close his fist came to the side of my head by the rush of air against my ear.
Before I could react, I realised I was at the other end of the room, several feet away from where I’d been standing initially. Sasha was beside me, and Harvey’s arms were wrapped tightly around my waist.
My first thought probably shouldn’t have been how good it felt to be pressed against him, considering the crisis we were in, but it was.
‘How did you do that?’ I stammered.
‘Teleportation,’ Harvey said, not attempting to release his hold on me. ‘I told you I had skills, Red.’
‘How were you ever caught by S.P.T.F. if you can disappear at will?’
‘I can’t disappear entirely, just teleport using the smoke cloud. S.P.T.F. calculated where I would reappear and set a trap for me.’
I tilted my face towards his.
‘What did you do, Harvey? Why did they arrest you?’ I asked, suddenly having an acute need to know what atrocious crime the man whose arms I was in, had committed.
Harvey gazed down at me, his eyes searching my face and I thought I saw the hint of remorse in their black depths before his jaw hardened.
‘Another time, another place, Red.’
Gerrard was shouting now, his words making no sense as he hopped from foot to foot, causing the last remaining pieces of furniture to wobble with each thud. It was then I saw the brown rat running around his ankles.
‘Mari is in trouble,’ I said. ‘What’s the next part of the plan?’
‘Sasha needs to persuade Gerrard to calm down.’
‘How can she possibly do that?’ I asked.
‘By seducing him.’
Sasha scoffed. ‘I don’t think so. Besides my powers only work on human men.’
‘Gerrard is part-human,’ Harvey replied. ‘You just need to try really hard to reach that part.’
She shook her blonde head.
‘I can’t do it.’
‘You have to. Turn on your feminine charm before our mission is disbanded and we’re all slung back into the detainment unit.’
23
Carter stood stiffly beside Chief Andrews while they observed the new recruits on the surveillance monitors mounted on the wall. He couldn’t let the concern he felt show on his face. He’d never been worried about this phase of the operation before but his gut clenched as the Irishman swung his gigantic fist and clocked Ember on the side of her face. She staggered forward, the flames in her hands deteriorating as she struggled to see straight.
Carter heard Pete whispering the ante as last-minute bets was placed between the men. This phase was odds on, which meant his friend had faith that at least some of the recruits would make it out of the test alive and wasn’t prepared to lose money.
‘Interesting.’
Carter turned his attention back to Chief Andrews.
‘What is, sir?’
‘The demon has surprised me. From his psychological evaluations, I thought we’d have trouble convincing him to think of the team before himself, but it seems as if Ember has solved that problem for us. Keep your eye on her, Carter. She could be the most critical element in the success of this mission.’
‘Yes, sir.’
Carter intended to keep his eye on her, and the other men’s hands off. The demon included, who still had Ember in his arms, even though she was no longer in danger.
The older woman had morphed into a rat at the first sign of danger bu
t was back now and running amok while the blonde was trying every possible trick to calm the half-ogre down.
‘What’s that?’ Carter asked, suddenly spotting a shard of silver tucked into the back of the Irishman’s belt.
He didn’t need the answer; as it became all too apparent just what it was.
‘Who in the hell gave him a knife?’ Carter demanded.
Chief Andrew turned to him, folding his arms across his chest.
‘I did,’ he said, ‘and I’d watch your tone if I were you, son.’
Carter took the rebuke on the chin. He didn’t like that the parameters of the test had changed without him being consulted. Why was the chief adding danger into what was already a volatile enough situation?
This exercise was only supposed to encourage collaboration, not the ability to disarm another member of the team.
‘Sorry, sir, but we’ve never given a recruit a knife before. Has the objective changed? If so, then I was unaware.’
The chief went back to staring at the screen.
‘I don’t need to explain the objective to you, Carter. It’s above your pay-grade. You don’t see any of the other men challenging my actions.’
‘I wasn’t challenging, merely questioning.’
‘And what gives you the right to question your senior officer?’
Carter ground his teeth together. The room was silent so he was well aware that the rest of the team had stopped what they were doing to witness his dressing-down.
‘I don’t have the right, sir.’
‘Then do what you should be doing, son, just like the rest of the team. Observe your charge for weaknesses and areas of concern.’
‘Yes, sir.’
Carter returned his attention to the screen just in time to see the knife make contact with Ember’s arm.
24
Mari, still as a rat, was running across Gerrard’s feet, distressing him even more than he already was.
‘Someone needs to catch that rat,’ I said. ‘Mari thinks she’s helping, but she’s making things worse.’
Harvey nodded and reluctantly released me.
‘I’ll get her,’ he said. ‘Sasha, talk to Gerrard or do whatever it is you do to bring a man under your spell.’
‘It’s not a spell,’ Sasha replied haughtily. ‘Men fall for my natural charisma. There’s only one witch in this group and I, for one, don’t trust witches.’
Her beautiful face twisted with resentment, which told me that her problem with me had nothing to do with me being magical.
I opened my mouth to reply, but Harvey beat me to it.
‘Don’t start, Sasha,’ he said.
Sasha flushed at his reprimand and pouted like a spoilt child.
‘Just try your best to get through to Gerrard,’ he continued tersely, ‘while I grab Mari.’
I thought Sasha was going to argue but she took a deep breath and as if flicking some internal switch, her scowl was instantly replaced with an angelic smile. She straightened her back and pushed her breasts out, twirling a strand of her long blonde hair around her finger.
She certainly captured Harvey’s attention, and I snapped my fingers in front of his eyes.
‘You’re supposed to be getting Mari,’ I said.
Harvey blinked as if waking from a daydream.
‘Oh yeah, right,’ he said, fading into his black cloud.
Sasha strode confidently towards Gerrard. She laid a hand on his hip, presumably, as she wasn’t tall enough to reach his shoulder. She said something to him, and he stopped staggering around. I watched the black smoke cloud settle over the rat and then Harvey was suddenly standing beside me again.
‘Take this thing, will you,’ he said, almost throwing Mari at me.
‘Scared of rats?’
Harvey shook his head vehemently, but I didn’t miss the slight tremble of his hand.
‘I’m not scared. They just creep me out.’
I laughed and put Mari back on my shoulder. She seemed to squeak her thanks, and I felt her furry body settle against my neck.
‘Looks as if Sasha is making progress with Gerrard,’ I said, noting he was agreeing to whatever she was saying. ‘What should we do now?’
‘Well as I assume none of our palm prints will open the door, I’m thinking of asking him to break it down so we can get out of here.’
‘What if that makes him go all crazy again?’
I wasn’t keen on his suggestion, but Harvey shrugged.
‘It’ll be fine.’
He put his fingers in his mouth and whistled.
‘Hey, Gerrard. Come open this door for me.’
The hulking Irishman was breathing heavily, but it seemed so long as Sasha was touching him and whispering whatever words were penetrating his anger, he was under control.
He walked towards us, and Sasha remained by his side.
‘The door is locked. I need you to break it down,’ Harvey said.
Gerrard nodded and raised his fists, ready to pummel the door. I smiled gratefully, and I thought he was going to smile back, but his eyes narrowed when he saw the rat sitting on my shoulder.
The next few seconds seemed to pass in a blur of motion. The look in Gerrard’s eye must have frightened Mari, as she let out a shrill squeal and ran across the collar of my t-shirt, disappearing inside the material for safety.
‘Ow, ow, ow,’ I yelped, her claws scratching my skin as she scurried over my breasts and down my stomach.
Gerrard roared and rammed his shoulder into Sasha, sending her sprawling across the floor. Once free from her hold, he flung himself at me. I saw a glint of metal before I realised he was holding a knife.
‘He’s got a knife,’ I screamed, trying to dodge out of the way but the blade connected with my bare forearm.
I winced as blood instantly seeped from the long thin wound. It felt like the worst paper-cut I’d ever experienced, and I used my other hand to apply pressure to my arm.
Harvey jumped onto Gerrard’s back, clinging to his thick neck as the half-ogre tried to swat him. I felt a hot rage swirl inside my stomach. I wished I had a gun. Just the sight of one usually captured someone’s attention.
Sasha was flat out on her stomach, and I couldn’t tell if she was breathing or not. Mari had settled in the waistband of my trousers, and Harvey was trying his best to squeeze Gerrard’s windpipe. Blood was seeping through my fingers, the slice across my arm having no chance to clot. I felt a little woozy and hoped I wouldn’t faint.
That wouldn’t help my badass image in the slightest.
25
I thought about using my powers again. I could chant a spell to expel a giant fireball but chances were I’d set the room ablaze and while I would be unharmed, the group wouldn’t fair as well. My skin seemed to sizzle in response, as if telling me to have faith. Flames flickered up and down my arms as I staggered towards Gerrard. His face was turning bright red as he struggled to breathe under Harvey’s chokehold.
‘Harvey, stop it,’ I shouted. ‘You’re going to kill him.’
The demon stared back at me, not Harvey. This time, his eyes were black and soulless, and I felt an icy cold hand of fear settle around my neck. I readied myself for an attack, but Harvey seemed to regain control of his emotions and disappear inside his smoke cloud.
Gerrard sucked in a deep breath and I felt sorry for what I was about to do, but I couldn’t give him time to recover and attack us again. I reached out and pressed my hands firmly against his chest. The Irishman bellowed in pain as the heat coming from my palms scorched his t-shirt.
I’d only wanted to incapacitate him but the fire danced before my eyes, the magic urging me to punish him harder with the flames. The temptation was immense and I realised it wasn’t only Harvey who was battling to keep his true nature under control.
I pulled back and the flames immediately dispelled. That’s when the door opened and five men kitted out with scary-looking weapons surrounded us. Weapons, which I noticed rather uneasily, w
ere being waved in my direction.
‘Put your hands up,’ I heard someone shout.
‘Do as they say,’ Harvey said, reappearing at my side and putting his hands on his head.
Two of the men grabbed Gerrard and I caught a glimpse of a needle being inserted into his arm before the half-ogre immediately slumped and stilled.
‘Where have you guys been?’ I demanded as Carter stepped closer to me.
‘Hands where I can see them, Ember,’ he replied evenly, his finger poised on the trigger of his gun.
‘Why are you pointing that at me? I’m not the one that went berserk and trashed the place.’
‘Don’t make this harder than it has to be.’
‘Harder than it has to be? Sasha is still on the floor over there. Don’t you think someone should be checking whether she is ok?’
‘She’s not my concern. You are. Now put your damn hands above your head before I’m ordered to shoot you.’
There was no emotion in his blue eyes to indicate whether he would carry out his threat or not, so I shakily lifted my hands up. Blood continued to flow from the wound on my arm and began to drip steadily onto the floor.
‘Don’t be an arsehole, Carter. She is cut and needs medical attention,’ Harvey said, dropping his hands to reach for my injured arm.
‘Take your damn hands off her,’ Carter replied, advancing towards us and only stopping when his gun was inches from Harvey’s head.
‘Make me.’
The two men stared each other down, and their combined testosterone seemed to fill the room.
‘Stop it, Harvey,’ I said. ‘Don’t you think there’s been enough violence for one day?’
His dark eyes connected with mine.
‘I’m not letting go of you until G.I Joe here, gets you a fucking bandage,’ he said through gritted teeth. ‘You’ll probably need stitches too.’
The sudden sound of clapping caused everyone to turn towards the door. Chief Andrews walked in, continuing his sardonic clapping as he circled the room.
‘At ease, men,’ he said, and everyone holstered their weapons.